Same-sex marriage in the Northwest Territories
Encyclopedia
Same-sex marriage in the Northwest Territories: The Northwest Territories
began granting marriage
licences to same-sex couples
on July 20, 2005 upon the granting of Royal Assent
to the Civil Marriage Act
.
In December 2004, NWT Justice Minister Charles Dent stated the government would not issue marriage licences to same-sex couples until a court ruling or federal legislation legalized them. However, he indicated that the territory would not contest any lawsuit on the subject, and would comply with such a ruling or law.
On May 20, 2005, a Yellowknife
couple sued the Northwest Territories government over the right to get married, saying that refusing them a licence is a violation of their Charter rights. The territorial Supreme Court was supposed to hear the case on Friday, May 27, 2005; however, it was adjourned for some three weeks at the request of a couple who wanted intervenor status in the case to oppose same-sex marriage. Pro-"family" activists Ruby and Laurin Trudel of Yellowknife applied to intervene in the lawsuit. They had been members of Yellowknife's Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada until it started to share communion and the pulpit with the United Church -- a denomination which had begun blessing same-sex unions. The couple was granted intervenor status, and on Friday, June 17, 2005, CBC North reported that the intervenors had requested Party Status in the case. If it had been granted by the territorial Supreme Court, it would have given them more direct involvement in the case, and the right to appeal in the event the judge sided with the plaintiffs' request to redefine marriage in the territory. The case was again put off again for nearly another three weeks, and was set to resume Wednesday, July 6.
On June 30, the financial support for the Trudels evaporated. Their lawyer withdrew his services. The Trudels decided to proceed alone, without legal representation.
On July 06, Ruby Trudel, alone, testified before the Supreme Court. She apologized to the court for her lack of knowledge of court procedures, and said that she was not homophobic: "While we do not support, encourage or endorse their lifestyle, we hold nothing against them personally." She said that those who promote the exclusion of same-sex couples from marriage have been "rendered voiceless at the federal level." Actually, the debates in the Canadian Senate were in full swing at that time. She expressed concern over the possibility of persecution of Christian clergy if SSM were to become legalized. She said: "If the application before this court were to succeed, there is every reason to believe that repercussions against people of conscience and religion....will soon begin to occur here also." They asked that the court not impose costs on them: "Costs incurred to this point already exceed our ability to pay."
A ruling never came from the Territorial Supreme Court, after Royal Assent of the Civil Marriage Act, which automatically struck down the Territory's marriage law so it could include same-sex couples. The couple who challenged the Northwest Territory law have been awarded $5,000 in legal fees to cover court costs, a judge ruled. On October 17, 2005, Supreme Court Justice Virginia Schuler ordered the federal government, and therefore Canadian taxpayers, to reimburse Jason Perrino and Colin Snow for costs they incurred during their legal challenge. The two had married there unofficially in 2003.
Northwest Territories
The Northwest Territories is a federal territory of Canada.Located in northern Canada, the territory borders Canada's two other territories, Yukon to the west and Nunavut to the east, and three provinces: British Columbia to the southwest, and Alberta and Saskatchewan to the south...
began granting marriage
Marriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...
licences to same-sex couples
Same-sex marriage
Same-sex marriage is marriage between two persons of the same biological sex or social gender. Supporters of legal recognition for same-sex marriage typically refer to such recognition as marriage equality....
on July 20, 2005 upon the granting of Royal Assent
Royal Assent
The granting of royal assent refers to the method by which any constitutional monarch formally approves and promulgates an act of his or her nation's parliament, thus making it a law...
to the Civil Marriage Act
Civil Marriage Act
The Civil Marriage Act was legislation legalizing same-sex marriage across Canada...
.
In December 2004, NWT Justice Minister Charles Dent stated the government would not issue marriage licences to same-sex couples until a court ruling or federal legislation legalized them. However, he indicated that the territory would not contest any lawsuit on the subject, and would comply with such a ruling or law.
On May 20, 2005, a Yellowknife
Yellowknife, Northwest Territories
Yellowknife is the capital and largest city of the Northwest Territories , Canada. It is located on the northern shore of Great Slave Lake, approximately south of the Arctic Circle, on the west side of Yellowknife Bay near the outlet of the Yellowknife River...
couple sued the Northwest Territories government over the right to get married, saying that refusing them a licence is a violation of their Charter rights. The territorial Supreme Court was supposed to hear the case on Friday, May 27, 2005; however, it was adjourned for some three weeks at the request of a couple who wanted intervenor status in the case to oppose same-sex marriage. Pro-"family" activists Ruby and Laurin Trudel of Yellowknife applied to intervene in the lawsuit. They had been members of Yellowknife's Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada until it started to share communion and the pulpit with the United Church -- a denomination which had begun blessing same-sex unions. The couple was granted intervenor status, and on Friday, June 17, 2005, CBC North reported that the intervenors had requested Party Status in the case. If it had been granted by the territorial Supreme Court, it would have given them more direct involvement in the case, and the right to appeal in the event the judge sided with the plaintiffs' request to redefine marriage in the territory. The case was again put off again for nearly another three weeks, and was set to resume Wednesday, July 6.
On June 30, the financial support for the Trudels evaporated. Their lawyer withdrew his services. The Trudels decided to proceed alone, without legal representation.
On July 06, Ruby Trudel, alone, testified before the Supreme Court. She apologized to the court for her lack of knowledge of court procedures, and said that she was not homophobic: "While we do not support, encourage or endorse their lifestyle, we hold nothing against them personally." She said that those who promote the exclusion of same-sex couples from marriage have been "rendered voiceless at the federal level." Actually, the debates in the Canadian Senate were in full swing at that time. She expressed concern over the possibility of persecution of Christian clergy if SSM were to become legalized. She said: "If the application before this court were to succeed, there is every reason to believe that repercussions against people of conscience and religion....will soon begin to occur here also." They asked that the court not impose costs on them: "Costs incurred to this point already exceed our ability to pay."
A ruling never came from the Territorial Supreme Court, after Royal Assent of the Civil Marriage Act, which automatically struck down the Territory's marriage law so it could include same-sex couples. The couple who challenged the Northwest Territory law have been awarded $5,000 in legal fees to cover court costs, a judge ruled. On October 17, 2005, Supreme Court Justice Virginia Schuler ordered the federal government, and therefore Canadian taxpayers, to reimburse Jason Perrino and Colin Snow for costs they incurred during their legal challenge. The two had married there unofficially in 2003.